Elevator door mechanism



Jan. 12, 1937. c. NORTON ELEVATOR DOOR MECHANISM Filed Aug. 1, 1955 FIGS FIGA INVENTOR WNO'JCAL Y E N m w A Patented Jan. 12, 1937 ELEVATOR DOOR MECHANISM Application August 1,

15 Claims.

This invention relates to the operation of elevator hatchway doors and especially to the opening of locked hatchway doors from the corridor side under certain conditions.

In certain types of elevator installations, hatchway doors are locked in closed position against opening from the corridor side. However, it is desirable to be able to effect the opening of the hatchw-ay door at a floor at which the car is parked from the corridor side under certain conditions, as, for example, to permit the car attendant to enter the car. It is also desirable to be able to open the hatchway door at a floor from the corridor side under emergency conditions, regardless of whether or not the car is at that floor.

A feature of the invention is the provision of mechanism associated with toggle arms looking a hatchway door in closed position for preventing the opening of the hatchway door beyond a certain amount from the corridor side when the car is not at the floor at which the hatchway door is provided.

A second feature is the provision of mechanism whereby a hatchway door may be unlocked and opened from the corridor side, regardless of the position of the elevator car in the hatchway.

A third feature is the provision of mechanism rendered operable from the corridor side of a hatchw-ay door for unlocking the hatchway door and maintaining it unlocked until the mechanism is manually reset.

A fourth feature is the provision of a service key operable from the corridor side of a hatchway door to unlock the door when the car is positioned at the floor at which the door is located and the provision of an emergency key to unlock the door from the corridor side regardless of whether the car is positioned at that floor or not, each key being ineffective to perform the function of the other.

Other features and advantages will become apparent from the following description and appended claims.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is an elevation of the hatchway side of a door in closed position, embodying the operating and safety mechanism of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a section taken along the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a front view showing an emergency key plate; and

Figure 4 is a view taken along the line 4-4 of Figure 2.

1935, Serial No. 34,183

Referring to the drawing, a hatchway door It is suspended from hangers 12, which engage a track [4 to guide the door transversely of the door opening l5. Toggle arm IE is pivotally mounted at l8 to a bracket 20 mounted on a back plate 2| secured to hatchway wall 22 at one side of the stairway. Toggle arm it is pivotally connected at its other end to toggle arm H, which is pivotally mounted at 23 on the hatchway door. A spring closer and check device 2 pivotally connected to arm l6 and to a support 25, is provided to close and stop the hatchway door with the toggle arms in a straight line as shown in Figure 1. In this position the toggle arms constitute a positive lock against opening of the hatchway door from the corridor side. Arm ll has secured thereto a suitable grip 25, for breaking the toggle arms, to open the hatchway door from the elevator car.

To permit the opening of the door from the corridor side an extension 21 is positioned on toggle arm I! opposite and all but covering the lower portion of a vertical slot 28, formed in hatchway door ll near the rear edge thereof. Vertical slot 23 terminates in an aperture 36 on the corridor side of the door. A service key 3!, provided for use by an authorized elevator attendant, is inserted in slot 28 from the corridor side, for the purpose of breaking the toggle arms. Service key Si is preferably of solid circular section, and of a length sufiicient to gain enough leverage for conveniently breaking the toggle arms. To open the door, key 3! is inserted in aperture 30, through slot 28, down under extension 2?, where an applied vertical leverage lifts toggle arm 17 about its pivot 23, and thus toggle arm it about its pivot 18, to break the straight arm toggle lock whereby the door may be opened.

Mechanism is provided to prevent the opening of the door from the corridor side, upon the breaking of the toggle by key 3!, when the car is not at the floor at which the door is located. Such mechanism consists of a latch 33 of a bell crank 34 pivotally mounted at 35 on bracket 20. Latch 33 is biased into position about pivot 35, by means to be described later, with a surface 36 held in abutment with a lug 3| positioned on toggle arm i6. Lug 3| is adapted to enter a notch 32 of latch 33 upon door opening movement. As toggle arm 16 and lug 3| thereon are urged upward about pivot E8 in door opening movement, latch arm 33 follows in abutment until lug 3i enters notch 32. This looks toggle arm i6 and thus the hatchway door against further opening movement. As the movement of toggle arm l6 necessary to the locking engagement of latch 33 with lug 3! is small, the door is permitted to open but a small distance.

To enable the opening of the door from the corridor side, with the car positioned at the floor, latch 33 is prevented from cooperating with lug 3| to lock the toggle arms. This may be accomplished in various ways. In the arrangement illustrated, a vertical rod 3! is pivotally secured at its upper end to an arm 38 of bell crank 35, and at its lower end to an arm 59 of a bell crank 4!, which is pivotally mounted on a bracket 52 fixedly supported on the landing as. The weight of rod 37 tends to urge bell cranks 34 and in relative movement counterclockwise about their respective pivots. Mounted on an arm 35 of bell crank M is a roller 55 adapted to engage a fixed cam 46 on elevator car M, such cam thus serving as an abutment. A suitable running clearance is provided between cam 45 and roller 55 so that, as the car moves up and down in the hatchway, cam 46 passes roller 55 without contact. When, with the car at the floor, key 3! is inserted in aperture 38 incident to the opening of the door, latch 33 is urged about its pivot 35 by red 37. As latch 33 moves about its pivot, roller 45 moves across the small running clearance to contact cam 46 and, through the interconnection of rod 3?, holds lug 35 out of notch 32, to permit the opening of the door. 7

It is desired under certain emergency conditions, such as a fire, to provide mechanism whereby the hatchway doors may be unlocked and opened regardless of the position of the car. Such emergency mechanism generally designated 48 consists of a spring 55 held under compression between a bushing 52 positioned on support 25, and a collar 52 secured to a push rod 53 which is adapted, upon upward movement, to engage the under edge of toggle arm i5. Push rod 53 is slidably guided in bushings 5i and 49 positioned on support 25 and an additional bushing 61 secured to plate 2!. Collar 52 is held down against the force of spring 55 by a trigger 55 secured between arms 55 and 5'! which are pivotally mounted at 58 to support 25. A keeper 55 secured to arm 56 is disposed within the path of downward movement of a lug 66, adjustably secured to arm 37, upon clockwise motion of the arm.

To operate this mechanism an emergency key 64 of suitable length and preferably of a lunar or crescent shaped section, is provided. When key 64 is inserted in an aperture 63 formed in a key plate 82 secured to the rear door jamb, it contacts the end of an L-shaped rod 55, positioned within tube 59 formed on key plate 52. .A pocket 68 formed in the hatchway wall maintains rod 65 outside the path of door opening movement (see Figure 2). Pressure applied to rod til causes clockwise movement of arms 56 and 5?, rod 513 being pivotally secured thereto at el. Upon the clockwise movement of the arms, keeper 55 is projected within the path of downward movement of lug 55, preventing rod 37 from dropping. This renders latch 33 ineffective to lock the door. Upon further movement of arms 56 and 5'1, trigger 55 disengages collar 52, which releases spring 50 to force collar 52 and thus push rod 53 upward. Push rod 53 is forced upward against toggle arm l6 with suflicient force to lift the toggle arm, thereby breaking the toggle lock to permit the opening of the door. The toggle lock is held broken until the mechanism is reset by hand by forcing push rod 53 down against the pressure of spring 50, and by moving arms 56 and 5'! so that trigger 55 again engages collar 52. This movement of the arms retracts keeper 65 from under lug 66, rendering latch 33 again efiective to lock the doors.

Either the service key operated mechanism or the emergency key operated mechanism or both these mechanisms may be provided for the various doors of an elevator hatchway installation. It is preferred, however, that a combination of both of these mechanisms be provided for at least one door, preferably the door at the ground floor, where the car is normally parked, and which usually would be the most advantageous entrance to the hatchway during an emergency. As previously stated, authorized attendants are furnished with service keys such as key 3! to enable them to gain access to the elevator car, while it is parked at the floors provided wih service key mechanisms. An emergency or firemans key such as key 64 is positioned near the hatchway entrance of each door provided with emergency mechanism. This key is preferably housed in a locked container with a break glass cover, to insure its use only in case of a real emergency. As previously described, service key 39 is preferably of round circular section for insertion in a circular aperture 3G in hatchway door I I. Emergency or firemans key 5 is preferably of lunar or crescent shaped section for insertion in a lunar shaped aperture 63 in plate 62 secured to the rear door jamb.

Thus the service key cannot operate the emer-,

gency mechanism. By making the emergency key of a diameter greater than that of the service key, the operation of the service key mechanism by the emergency key is also prevented. Thus, neither key can perform the function of the other.

When a door is provided with only the emergency key operated mechanism, the latch 33 and its associated mechanism may be omitted. When the emergency mechanism has been operated, the hatchway door may be freely moved back and forth until the mechanism has been manually reset.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

1. In an elevator installation; a hatchway door at a floor, said door having an aperture extending therethrough; a pair of toggle arms for operating said door and for locking it in closed position; a key for operating said arms through said aperture from the corridor side of said door to break the toggle and thus unlock said door; a latch pivotally mounted in said hatchway and means on one of said toggle arms for cooperating with said latch to lock said toggle arms; an abutment carried by the car; and} means associated with said latch for engaging said abutment when the car is at said floor to prevent said cooperation of said latch with said means on one of said toggle arms upon operation of the toggle arms by said key to unlock the door, said latch and said means on one of said toggle arms cooperating to prevent the engagment of said means associated with the latch with said abutment when said door is closed.

2. In an elevator installation; a hatchway door at a floor, said door having an aperture extending the toggle and thus unlock said door; a latch pivotally mounted in said hatchway and a member on one of said toggle arms for cooperating with said latch to lock said toggle arms against more 10 than a certain amount of door opening movement; a fixed cam carried by the car; and means associated with said latch adapted to engage said cam when the car is at said fioor, said latch and said member cooperating to prevent the engagement of said means with said cam when said door is closed, but acting, upon the breaking of said toggle, to permit said means to engage the cam, the engagement of said means with said cam preventing the locking of said toggle arms by said latch and member, thereby permitting the opening of said door.

3. In an elevator installation; a hatchway door at a floor; a pair of toggle arms for operating said door, said toggle arms being extended in a straight line when the door is closed to lock the door, said door having an aperture extending therethrough so as to be beneath one of said toggle arms when the door is closed; a removable key operable in said aperture for breaking the toggle from the corridor side; an arm pivotally mounted in said hatchway, said arm being provided with a notch; a lug on one of said toggle arms for entering said notch to lock the toggle arms against more than a certain amount of door opening movement; a cam carried by the elevator car; a second pivoted arm connected to said first named arm; and a roller on said second pivoted arm adapted to engage said cam when the car is at said fioor to prevent movement of said first named arm about its pivot into position to permit said lug to enter said notch upon the breaking of said toggle arms, thereby permitting the opening of said door upon the breaking of said toggle by said key, said lug engaging said first named arm when said toggle arms are in extended position to hold the second named arm in position where said roller clears said earn.

4. In an elevator installation; a hatchway having an opening therein at a fioor; a sliding door for closing said opening, said door having an aperture extending from the corridor to the hatchway; a pair of toggle arms, one arm pivotally mounted on the hatchway wall and the other connected to said door for operating the door, said toggle arms being extended in a straight line when the door is closed for locking the door; a removable key operable in said aperture for breaking the toggle from the corridor side; a bell crank lever pivotally mounted on said hatchway wall, one arm of said bell crank lever being provided with a notch; a lug on said one toggle arm for cooperating with said notch to lock the toggle arms against more than a certain amount of door opening movement; a rod pivotally connected to a second arm of said bell crank lever; a second bell crank lever pivotally mounted on the hatchway door sill, one arm of the second bell crank lever being pivotally connected to the lower end of said rod for joint rotative movement of the bell crank levers about their pivots, said rod and said arms of said bell crank levers connected to the rod acting to bias the first named bell crank lever into position to cooperate with said lug; a fixed cam mounted on the elevator car; and a roller positioned on a second arm of said second bell crank lever for contacting said cam, said lug normally engaging said one arm of the first named bell crank lever to hold through said rod the second named bell crank lever in position with said roller out of the path of vertical movement of said cam, the movement of said lug, upon operation of said toggle arms by said key to unlock the door when the car is positioned at said floor, permitting said levers to swing about their pivots until said roller strikes said cam, which thereby holds said levers against further movement and prevents said lug catching in said notch, movement of the first named lever about its pivot upon the breaking of said toggle by said key when the car is not at said fioor and the cam is not in position to stop such movement, causing said lug to catch in the notch, thereby locking the door against more than a certain amount of opening movement.

5. In an elevator installation; a hatchway closure at a fioor; means for locking said closure in closed position; means adapted upon operation to operate said locking means to unlock said 010-- sure, said means being biased to operated condition; means for restraining said unlocking means against operation; and means operable from the corridor side of said closure for releasing said restraining means to free said unlocking means to operate said locking means to unlock said closure.

6. In an elevator installation; a hatchway closure at a fioor; a toggle for locking said closure in closed position; means adapted upon operation to break said toggle, unlocking said closure, said means being biased to operated condition; means for restraining said toggle breaking means against operation; and means operable from the corridor side of said closure for releasing said restraining means to free said toggle breaking means for operation to break said toggle.

'7. In an elevator installation; a hatchway door at a floor; toggle arms for operating said door and for looking it when closed; means operable to break the toggle; means biasing said toggle breaking means to operated condition; means for restraining said biasing means; and means operable from the corridor side of said door for rendering said restraining means ineffective.

8. In an elevator installation; a hatchway door at a floor; toggle arms for operating said door and for looking it when closed; resilient means; means for maintaining said resilient means in a condition having energy stored therein; means operable from the corridor for releasing said maintaining means; and means operable by said resilient means upon release of said maintaining means to break the toggle to unlock the door.

9. In an elevator installation; a hatchway having an opening therein at a floor; a door for closing said opening; a pair of toggle arms for operating said door and for locking it in closed position; a member in the hatchway operable to break the toggle; a spring for effecting operation of said member to break the toggle; means for holding said spring in a state of compression; a key operable from the corridor to move said holding means into position to release said spring to operate said member to break the toggle, thereby permitting the opening of said door, said spring, until restored to compressed condition, acting through said member to maintain the toggle broken.

10. In an elevator installation; ahatchway, said hatchway having an opening therein at a fioor; a door for closing said opening; a pair of toggle arms for operating said door, said toggle arms assuming a straight line position to lock the door when the door is closed; a rod positioned in the hatchway to engage one of said toggle arms and movable to break the toggle; a spring connected to said rod for efiecting movement thereof to break the toggle; trigger means for holding said spring in a state of compression; an extension rod connected at one end to said trigger means; a member having an aperture to slidably receive the other end of said extension rod, said aperture extending into the corridor at one side of said opening; a removable key for inserting in said aperture to operate said rod, said rod upon being operated by said key effecting, through movement of said trigger means, the release of said spring which acts to move the first named rod into engagement with said one toggle arm, thereby breaking the toggle to permit the opening of the door, said spring holding said first named rod in position to maintain the toggle broken until said spring is again compressed.

11. In an elevator installation; an elevator car; a hatchway for said car, said hatchway having an opening therein at a floor served by said car; a sliding door for closing said opening; a casing for said door in said opening; a pair of toggle arms, one arm pivotally mounted on the hatchway wall and the other arm connectedto said door for operating said door, said toggle arms assuming a straight line position when the door is closed to lock the door; a rod positioned in the hatchway to engage the under edge of one of said toggle arms and movable vertically to break the toggle to unlock the door; a member secured to the hatchway wall for guiding said rod; a collar secured to said rod; a helical spring arranged on said rod between said member and said collar; a pivoted lever having a lug secured thereto for cooperating with said collar to hold said rod in a position beneath said under edge of said one toggle arm with said spring compressed; an extension rod connected at one end or" said lever; a member extending into the hatchway through one side of said door casing, said member having an aperture to slidably support the other end of said extension rod, said aperture extending through said 'loor casing to the corridor side of the hatchway door; a key plate arranged over said aperture with .a key hole therein of a certain contour; and a removable key for inserting in said aperture through said key hole to operate said rod, said rod upon being operated by said key effecting, through rotative movement of said lever, the release of said collar by said lug, thereby releasing said spring which acts to force the first named rod upwardly against said one toggle arm, thereby breaking the toggle to permit the opening of the door, said spring holding said first named rod in position to maintain the toggle broken until said spring is again compressed and said lug moved into position for cooperation with said collar to hold said spring compressed.

12. In an elevator installation; a hatchway closure at a floor; means for locking said closure in closed position; means for unlocking said closure; means for preventing the opening of said closure upon its being unlocked; means controlled by car position for rendering said preventing means ineffective when the car is at said fioor; additional means for unlocking said door; and means operable by said additional means for rendering said preventing means infiective so as to enable the opening of the door regardless of theposition of the car in the hatchway.

13. In an elevator installation; a hatchway door at a fioor; toggle arms for operating said door and for looking it in closed position; latching means for locking the toggle arms against more than a certain amount of door opening movement when the car is not at said floor; means operable only when the car is at said floor for rendering said latching means inefiective to lock said toggle arms; resilient means; means for door at a floor; toggle arms for operating said door and for looking it in closed position; a key for operating said arms from the corridor to break the toggle and thereby unlock the door; latching means for locking the toggle arms against more than a certain amount of door opening movement; means operable only when the car is at said floor for rendering said latching means ineffective to lock said toggle arms; resilient means; a member arranged in the hatchway to be operated by said resilient means to break the toggle; holding means for rendering said resilient means ineffective to operate said member; a second key operable from the corridor to release said holding means; and means operable by said holding means upon release thereof to render said latching means inefiective to lock the toggle arms, said resilient means acting upon release of said holding means to actuate said member to break the toggle, permitting opening of the door regardless of the position of the car in the hatchway.

15. In an elevator installation; a hatchway having an opening at a floor; a door for closing said opening, said door having an aperture extending therethrough; a pair of toggle arms for operating the door and for looking it in closed position; a key operable in said aperture from the corridor for breaking the toggle to unlock the door; a latch pivotally mounted on the hatchway wall; a member on one of said toggle arms for cooperating with said latch to lock the toggle arms against more than a certain amount of door opening movement; means operable only when the car is at said floor for preventing cooperation of said latch with said member to lock said toggle arms upon operation of said toggle arms by said key to unlock the door; a spring; a second member arranged in the hatchway to be operated by said spring to break the toggle; means for holding said spring in a state of compression to prevent the toggle being broken by said second mem ber; a second key operable from the corridor to release said holding means; means operable by said holding means upon release thereof to render said latch ineffective to lock the toggle arms, said spring acting upon release of said holding means to actuate said second member to break the toggle, permitting opening of the door regardless of the position of the car in the hatchway, said spring until again compressed acting through said member to maintain the toggle broken; and means for preventing operation of said holding means by said first mentioned key.

CLIFFORD NORTON. 

